


And suddenly, you were there

by cephalopodas



Category: The Legend of Zelda & Related Fandoms, The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess
Genre: F/F, M/M, Mute Link, PTSD
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-06-16
Updated: 2020-06-17
Packaged: 2021-03-04 06:01:30
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 2
Words: 2,958
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24748768
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/cephalopodas/pseuds/cephalopodas
Summary: After the events of Twilight Princess, Link struggles to adapt back to normal life. Rusl is worried and asks Shad to provide Link some company.Elsewhere, in Hyrule Castle, Zelda is suffering a similar fate.
Relationships: Ilia/Zelda (Legend of Zelda), Link/Shad (Legend of Zelda)
Comments: 8
Kudos: 13





	1. Chapter 1

It started off more as a suggestion. Or, it could have been interpreted as a command, really.

Either way, Shad knew he had an important job to do.

Since Link’s journey had come to an end, and since Hyrule had shed its cloak of twilight, much had changed. Princess Zelda, soon to be queen, had spent all of her days working on rebuilding her kingdom, trying her best not to pay much thought to the events that had unfolded.

Link had long since returned the master sword to its slumbering place in the Lost Woods and returned to Ordon.

Few people knew, or cared to check, how he was doing after this turn of events.

Sure, he had saved Hyrule, but very few people actually cared what Link endured.

At least himself, Zelda, Midna, and the goddesses themselves knew who he was and what he had gone through. But back in Ordon Village and even Castle Town, he was a strange face against thousands.

That’s why Rusl suggested what he did.

“Shad, my boy, if I’m not intruding… would you consider coming back to Ordon and providing Link some company?”

Shad looked up from his books spread across the table and blinked. Sure, he had helped Link through his journey, but he wasn’t sure what made him in specific so qualified to help the young hero.

“It’s just…” Rusl started, as he shifted at his usual spot at Telma’s bar, “...that since he’s returned back to Ordon, he hasn’t been acting himself. I racked my brain thinking of everyone who would know him best, and you came up first.”

Shad was taken aback.

“Me?” he asked incredulously to his long-time friend. “What could I possibly provide Link? I mean- thank you for the opportunity- but what could I in specific help him with?”

Rusl sighed. “It’s just… since helping Princess Zelda and going through… his ordeal to rid Hyrule of its twilight,” he said through measured words, “Link hasn’t been the same. I thought someone he knew and someone of a similar age would help him feel more used to normal life, more grounded.”

“But… what about Ilia?” Shad asked. He at least knew at least enough about Link that Ilia was one of his lifelong best friends that grew up with him in Ordon.

“Oh, Ilia!” Rusl replied. “Thanks to her work on our town and our livestock, she’s been invited by the princess herself to work in the royal stables.” Rusl flashed a smile at Shad before looking back at the table. “So, she won’t be around Ordon much anymore these days.”

“Oh…” Shad trailed off. Honestly, he hadn’t known much of what to do with himself after Link had discovered the secrets of the City in the Sky and the Oocoo. Shad remembered fondly as he worked with Link to uncover the secrets, unaware at the time at how it would help the hero in his journey, but completely enthralled nonetheless to help.

_Yes,_ he thought assuredly, _I could get used to helping Link some more._

\--

Back in Ordon, Link had concluded his day of work at sunset. Some time had passed since everything had ended, and his hair had grown longer. Well, it had been growing the whole time he was on his adventure, as haircuts weren’t his number one priority, but he had been able to stuff it in his cap. Now, back at home, he kept his hair tied in a low ponytail.

As he started methodically preparing for the end of the day, about to ascend the ladder into his tree house, he was greeted with noise from behind him.

“Link!” a voice called out to him.

He looked at the trail leading up to his house, where Rusl and Shad were making their way towards him. Rusl had always been like a father figure to him, and Shad had helped him immensely during his quest, so both were very welcome faces.

“Link!” Rusl said. “I’m glad I caught you. Shad’s staying in Ordon to focus on his research.”

_“Oh?”_ Link’s raised eyebrow seemed to ask.

“Well, it’s just that as I thought of places that would be quiet enough to focus, Ordon came to mind. Shad here’s working on some amazing stuff!” Rusl clapped his hand down on Shad’s shoulder and he almost seemed crushed under the weight. Sure, Shad could keep his own, but he still much preferred to read by the lamplight than wrestle goats, thank you very much.

Link smiled. Rusl and Shad had been two of the people of the resistance who helped him fight back against the growing darkness in Hyrule. They both had a special place in his heart.

_“I’d be happy to house him,”_ Link signed back.

“Great!” Rusl replied. “Because I’ve got nowhere else for him to go.” He laughed as he lightly pushed Shad towards Link’s house.

“Link, I… thank you for letting me stay with you,” Shad said. “I’m starting a new chapter into my research of the history of Hyrule’s past, and Castle Town has too much hustle and bustle for me to quite focus enough.”

Link smiled. _Now this was a change in his daily routine that he could look forward to,_ he thought.

\--

Link wasn’t used to having guests in his house. Sure, his tree house was fairly large, but it had just been him in there his entire life.

_Well,_ he thought, _except for those few months where no one ventured inside, where, after his return, a fine layer of dust had covered everything…_

He shook his head to rid himself of the thought. What was done was done, and now, in the current moment, he had a guest to attend to.

“Thank you so much for letting me stay here,” Shad said as he clumsily spilled some of his workbooks and papers onto Link’s main table. “I’m very sorry for any intrusion I may have caused.”

Link snorted. _“Trust me, there wasn’t much going on here anyway,”_ he signed. Shad was one of the few people outside of his hometown of Ordon that understood Link’s signing, and for that he was grateful.

“Well, thank you regardless, old boy!” Shad chirped as he tried to make sense of his mess of papers.

_“It’s honestly my pleasure,”_ Link signed back.

For now, Shad set up a cot on one of the many levels that jutted out from the walls of Link’s tree house.

_“We can figure out an actual bed situation at some point,”_ Link signed to the other man with a slight smile. _“But I hope for now I hope that this is comfortable enough.”_

“Yes, yes, of course it is!” Shad practically beamed. “The ability to stay in such a place that’s so disconnected from the noise of the world and so close to nature is amazing! And, of course, the fact that you made room for me with no forewarning,” he finished with a light blush to the tips of his ears.

_“Honestly, it’s nothing to worry about,”_ Link signed to him. _“It’s actually nice to have a change of pace,”_ he signed with a slight chuckle.

“Oh. Oh! Well, I’m glad to provide whatever I can,” Shad said with a smile.

\--

That night, after Link had climbed to the top floor of his tree house and laid in bed, he stared down at Shad. He had seemed comfortable enough to fall asleep, his chest lightly rising up and down, his glasses folded neatly off to the side.

As Link watched, he wasn’t sure what to think about. He had just gotten back into the monotonous way of farm life after returning the master sword _(after the breaking of the mirror),_ and this was… well, this was a new hurdle in his life. _Not necessarily a bad one,_ he thought, _but something… new._ _Well,_ he thought to himself, _all I can do from here is see where this leads me_. He turned away from where he was staring at Shad to face the small window on the wall.

Outside, the moon was only a sliver full.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> UMMM???????? hi i've never written a fic before but this suddenly plopped itself into my brain when i couldn't sleep at 4 am.  
> pls let me know if you'd like to beta, or, more importantly, if you want more of the story. i have a whoooooole ton planned out but i kind of feel like i'm the only person that cares about these ships in 2020 lol  
> also, google docs seems to be completely ass at copy + pasting html, so i'm not sure if all the italics transferred. let me know


	2. Chapter 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> tl;dr Midna breaks everyone's hearts

In many ways, Zelda was wise beyond her years. After all, she had come face to face with the twilight invaders and was held captive in her own castle at just the age of 20. She had summoned the powers of the goddess Hylia to aid in destroying the evil that threatened her land. 

But, in many other ways, Zelda was still a naive girl.

No one would say this to her face, of course. Her court knew what she had gone through, and the citizens of Hyrule looked up to her as their leader.

However, she herself knew.

All of the years of her young life prepared her for this moment. Her court etiquette lessons, how to behave when discussing treaties, what her place as a ruler would one day be.

But because of this, she never truly had a chance to grow up.

Sure, she could spend hours meeting with merchants to discuss the taxation of trade routes going in and out of the country, and yes, she could draft a bill allocating the funds to improve Castle Town’s infrastructure.

But beneath all the academia and politics, she was just a little girl.

While she was sufficiently knowledgeable in what one would call “book smarts”, she lacked any real connections with people. She was always held on a pedestal, as though she weren’t _human._

She was fine with this, mostly. After all, it was the only life she had ever known. 

It wasn’t until _she_ came into her life that Zelda had begun to truly question what she knew about interpersonal relationships.

Midna arrived like a storm- both figuratively and literally. As Hyrule Castle seemed drenched in a never-ending rainfall, Midna appeared as, well, a feral goblin. 

It had taken some time to accept that this little imp was the true ruler of the twilight world that Zelda had only just discovered existed. 

To be honest, her arrival brought some semblance of order into Zelda’s world. Here she was, the leader of her kingdom, and here Midna was, the leader of her twilight realm. Two competent rulers- Zelda knew how to handle negotiations from all her years studying the subject.

However… Midna seemed to not hold the same ideals and education. As Zelda later found out, the leader of the Twili was chosen by the people of their world, someone who they found to be brave and worthy of leading them. While Midna was their princess, she hadn’t spent years reading academia and practicing her best royal behavior.

She just… was.

Of course, this initially led to spats between the two of them. After all, the entirety of Zelda’s life had been dedicated to becoming the perfect textbook example of a leader.

Which, of course, Midna found to be utter bullshit.

Now, long far past those initial conversations of what exactly made one qualified the nation, they were here, at the end. The twilight invasion had ended, Midna’s curse was broken, and she had a duty to go back to her world and lead her people into a new age of prosperity. Zelda knew this day would come. Of course she did.

What she didn’t know, however, was the emotional impact that it would leave on her.

She hadn’t even considered that Midna had been her first ever true friend until it seemed too late. It wasn’t until Midna broke the Mirror of Twilight that Zelda realized how completely and utterly alone she felt.

Of course she understood why Midna did it. This war had caused so much pain and suffering to the peoples of both their kingdoms, and if it could be prevented from ever happening again, then that course of action should be taken.

...That was what the logical side of Zelda’s brain told her. However, her heart felt something else. 

She had seen Midna’s reaction upon realizing what she had to do- and Link’s as well. Though the three of them spent only a few crucial moments together, it was obvious the connection that Midna had made with both Link and Zelda. She just had a way of touching their lives.

While Link had gone through many adventures with Midna in his quest to save both of their worlds, Zelda’s heart had _literally_ become one with Midna’s. Not that she was discounting how close Midna and Link had been, it was just that… well, the feeling of giving up your life force to save someone else’s had its… consequences. 

After all of this, Zelda realized that all of her years of academia never taught her anything about how to handle her own emotions. She was just a perfect statue that did what needed to be done at the correct moment.

That’s why, when Link not so subtly used his status as the hero of Hyrule to suggest that his own best friend go to work at the royal stables, that Zelda felt something light up inside of her. 

She had offered Link essentially anything he had wanted after everything was said and done- to become a member of the Hyrulean army, to take a place in her court as a noble- but all he wanted was to go back to his normal life in Ordon. 

On one level, she understood- Link had been through a lot, more than she could ever know. Of course he would seek the comfort of his old life. 

On another level, she was heartbroken.

Along with Midna, Link was one of the few people she had ever gotten to know. She may not have had as close of a relationship with him as Midna- in the end, they had mostly just fulfilled their duties as the holders of the triforce of Wisdom and Courage- but she had a connection with him, nonetheless.

She knew Link hadn’t wanted to hurt the princess’s feelings- he seemed apologetic as he declined her requests. 

While he just wanted to go back to his old life in Ordon, he _did_ know someone who could use a change of scenery.

It wasn’t until after Link had seen the whole wide world that he realized Ilia’s talents were wasted in a village as small as Ordon. He wanted nothing but the best for his childhood best friend, so with his status he knew what he could do. 

Naturally, Ilia was thrilled. A chance to work at the Hylian royal stables wasn’t an opportunity that came by to just anyone. Link had explained to the princess herself how amazing Ilia was with Epona and how knowledgeable she was to animal husbandry in general, and Zelda fondly agreed that her talents would be best suited where they could be appreciated. 

Secretly, selfishly, Zelda saw this as another opportunity to make a friend. 

_Making a friend…_ Zelda thought, _as though it was something completely salacious and inappropriate for a soon to be queen_.

While she had welcomed Ilia to Hyrule Castle with open arms, she was worried about Link. She knew that Ilia was Link’s best friend, and felt concern that the hero of Hyrule would push her away like that. She didn’t sense animosity, no, but almost as though Link wanted to be left alone for a long time.

She worried about him, truly. He was just a farm boy from a tiny town when destiny was suddenly thrust into his arms. With Zelda herself, at least, she knew the stories. The stories that had been passed through the Hylian royal family for ages- that the first of her name was the goddess Hylia reborn, and that all the women in her bloodline possessed the potential to have the power of the goddess.

Link, however, knew none of this. He was suddenly ripped away from everything he knew, told he was the hero chosen by the goddesses, and thrust onto a quest to save Hyrule and the Twilight Realm. 

While she had never pulled him aside to talk to him about it, she could just sense this from Link- that he had accepted his destiny and he was but a conduit for powers unknown to either of them.

 _That was another thing,_ Zelda thought, _that she had never truly gotten the chance to know Link._

Of course, after their defeat of Ganondorf, Link was celebrated and accoladded to the highest degree throughout all of Hyrule. Zelda herself couldn’t begin to thank him enough, and offered him anything within her decree- but he had declined.

He had the opportunity to be in charge of the Hyrulean army and, hell, if the people had demanded it, to have the princess’s hand in marriage.

But he declined all of it. 

Zelda desperately wished she knew better about how friendship and relationships worked because she sensed- she _knew_ \- that Link wasn’t handling everything all that well.

She could sense a deep fatigue in him- like part of his soul had been lost throughout his journey.

_In a way, it kind of had when Midna-_

_No,_ Zelda thought to herself, _there was more to it than that_. It had seemed as if when Link had ventured out into the great unknown, that he had learned that which could not be unlearned. 

Zelda wanted to find some way to comfort him. He had selflessly done everything in his power to help her, yet she knew no other ways to thank him besides offering what was in her political power. 

Zelda sighed. Again, she thought about trying this whole “friendship” concept with Ilia. It shouldn’t be hard enough, she reasoned- Ilia was around the same age as her and a very friendly girl. 

So what was this pit that she felt in her stomach?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> ok UHHHHH like well i first had planned this out to be a shadlink fic, but i’ve had this concept of a zelda/ilia story in the back of my mind for years, so i guess they kind one became one thing? i plan on having the stories intersect at some point, so it’s not completely random… uhh yeah
> 
> also this could be cleaned up a lot but i was like if i don't have the guts to post it now i'll probably never post it so just do it you anxious walnut
> 
> also also i have no idea how old zelda is during TP, i just figured 18th bday = coronation would be a reasonable idea so... yeah
> 
> EDIT: ok i aged her up to 20 bc i'm changing the law of hyrrule to be 21 = coronation lol


End file.
